Teton County community members discuss Teton Pass safety concerns and solutions

WILSON, Wyo. (KIFI) — Community members will gather Monday evening to discuss safety concerns on Teton Pass as crashes along the mountain highway continue to be a concern for drivers.

The public meeting was organized in response to a growing number of crashes on the pass in recent years. The event will give residents and commuters an opportunity to share their experiences, voice concerns and suggest ways to improve safety on one of the region's busiest mountain routes.

According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, Teton Pass averaged 68 crashes a year from 2016 to 2020, including eight fatal crashes during that period.

Representatives from the Wyoming Highway Patrol and the Wyoming Department of Transportation will attend the meeting to hear directly from the public and answer questions about current safety efforts and potential improvements.

"We hear complaints of people saying 'there's this vehicle traveling after this hour,' and 'we want to see more enforcement. We want to see more rules,' and those are all things we're listening for because we want people to understand that this is their road as well. We want them to feel safe traveling it," Arron Healy with the Wyoming Highway Patrol said.

Healy said hearing directly from the people who drive Teton Pass is key to improving safety.

"It's been put on by the community. We love to go out and have community engagement and listen to what our community travelers are telling us about, especially when it comes to a certain road," Healy said.

The Wyoming Highway Patrol is reminding drivers to make sure their vehicles are in good working order before heading over Teton Pass and to slow down, stay alert and eliminate distractions while traveling.